Design Engineer (f/m/x)

Alago; München; Hybrid; EUR 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work in Munich (WERK1)

Relocation support

Wellpass

Team dinners twice a week

Job summary

alago is building AI-powered construction software in Munich. As our Design Engineer, you shape how it looks, feels and behaves, shipping UI yourself in React.

You’ll own parts of the product end to end, collaborate with founders, and navigate a hybrid setup with three days in the Munich office. Equity is offered as part of a competitive compensation package.

Qualifications

• German language at C1 level and able to speak with project managers
• UX/UI proficiency with components, prototyping and design systems
• Strong frontend fundamentals with React, TypeScript and Tailwind
• Portfolio of complex software UI you designed and built
• Attention to detail in alignment, typography and motion

Responsibilities

• Draft PRDs based on user requirements
• Prototype new features in Figma or in code and contribute to specs
• Ship production UI in React/TypeScript/Tailwind with no handoffs
• Build and maintain a design system with tokens and components
• Learn from users by observing how construction teams use the product

Skills

C1 German

UX/UI proficiency

Frontend fundamentals

Tools

React

TypeScript

Tailwind

Figma

Job description

TL;DR — Construction software looks like it was designed in 2000. Because most of it was. As our Design Engineer, you define how alago looks, feels and behaves — and you ship it yourself, in React. Full-time, Munich.

Why this role exists

Construction software looks like it was designed in 2000. Because most of it actually was.

We're building something different. AI-powered, yes. But also: actually intuitive. Actually something a 60-year-old project manager in the office and a 19-year-old worker on site both want to open.

Construction deserves software that doesn't suck. You'll help build it.

alago is a year old — eleven people, 20+ customers, a €1M+ pre‑seed from leading construction‑tech VCs and one of Germany's largest project developers. You'll define our visual identity in month 12–24 of the company. That window closes fast.

Tasks

What you'll actually do

• Think through user requirements and draft PRDs.
• Prototype new features: In Figma, Claude Design or straight in code, and contribute to the specs so the team ships fast
• Ship production UI: Work directly in our frontend (React, TypeScript, Tailwind, shadcn) to build the interfaces you designed. No handoff, no telephone game.
• Build design system: Components in Figma, tokens and the real ones in code, so every engineer ships cohesive UI faster
• Learn from users: Watch what actually confuses construction teams, then fix it

Requirements

Must-haves

• C1 German: you'll talk to German construction project managers directly
• UX/UI proficiency: components, prototyping, systems thinking
• Real frontend fundamentals: React, TypeScript, Tailwind (or the equivalents you've worked in): component architecture, state, responsive layout, and enough instinct for performance to know when something will break
• A portfolio of complex software UI you both designed and built. Dense, real, hard problems. Not landing pages.
• Obsessive about the details: Alignment, type, motion curves, layout shift

Bonus

• You have strong opinions about products you love and hate, and you notice details other people miss
• Experience with Figma MCP, Cursor or Lovable
• Past work in B2B SaaS or complex enterprise tools
• You've built a design system from zero

Benefits

You’ll be our first design engineering hire, which means you own critical parts of the product end to end and work directly with the founders. It’s early enough that you help decide how the company works, and the path from here goes to either top individual contributor or leading design engineering / product as we grow, depending on where you’re strongest. Competive compensation with equity.

• Hybrid: three days a week in our central Munich office (WERK1)
• Plus: Wellpass, team dinners twice a week, relocation support.

How hiring works

Three stages, no endless loops.

1. A 20-minute intro call to see whether we are on the same page
2. A 30‑minute call with Vinzenz, our technical co‑founder.
3. An onsite case study in Munich. We send the materials ahead (plan on about 2‑3 hours of prep), then we work through it together in the office. This is where we see how you think, design, and debug under real conditions.

Offer decided within 24 hours of the case study, out within 48.